1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel generation of biocidal products of plant origin which do not pose any chrome risks to health or the environment and which have very little acute impact on health or the environment. Indeed, the active substances and the adjuvants that make up the biocidal products according to the invention are of plant and renewable origin, and are, moreover, completely, naturally and rapidly biodegradable. The various uses of these novel biocidal products are also claimed.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98
Biocidal products are commonly used in a wide variety of products including household and industrial disinfectants, insecticides, wood treatment products, repellents, etc. Biocidal products are intended to destroy, repel or render ineffective organisms judged to be harmful, for instance bacteria, viruses and fungi, to prevent the action thereof or to combat them in any other way via a chemical or biological action. There are therefore products which are chemically or biologically active and, consequently capable of having harmful effects on humans, animals and/or the environment.
A biocide is generally characterized by its field of application: bactericide, fungicide, virucide, insecticide, controlling vertebrates. Bactericides have an action against bacteria. Fungicides have an action against certain fungi and certain yeasts. Antivirals have an action against certain viruses. Insecticides have an action against insects. The latter category has an action against certain vertebrates (for example: rodent pests).
Biocidal active agents can therefore pose a major risk to human health (from an etymological point of view, “bios” means “life” and “-cide” means “which kills”), and animal health, but also to the environment through spreading or discharge. Indeed, biocidal activators can act for a long time, can spread, can be partially degraded or not at all degraded depending on their nature; they are then considered to be (bio)accumulatable. There is therefore a real advantage to developing biocidal products which are effective against harmful organisms but which are capable of being completely degraded naturally and of reducing the direct risks (linked to “acute” toxicity) or indirect risks (linked to chronic toxicity) to humans and animals.
International awareness regarding this subject has resulted in the adopting of European regulations and directives (REACH: 1907/2006 and Biocides: 98/8/EC), the objective of which is to limit the marketing, of dangerous chemical substances and to strictly regulate the use thereof.
The biocidal product market for Europe represents a volume of 300 000 to 750 000 metric tons per year (study of the impact of the Biocides directive 98/8/EC—2007). There is therefore a considerable advantage to using biocidal products which do not pose or pose significantly fewer dangers to humans, animals and/or the environment, while at the same time being effective at low concentration, and which are of plant and renewable origin and completely biodegradable.
Biocidal products can be used to clean and disinfect all types of surfaces. The active substances of which they are composed are generally active ingredients of chemical origin, sometimes active ingredients of natural origin, or else a mixture of the two.
In order to develop biocidal products which are not toxic and/or harmful to humans and the environment, and which are also biodegradable and biocompatible for humans, biocides of natural origin have been developed.
Indeed, biocidal products of plant origin appear to be the most suitable for meeting these combined objectives. The majority of biocidal solutions contain a washing base combined with a disinfectant base. However, these products do not necessarily have the same biocidal effectiveness or the same ease of use as biocidal solutions containing chemico-synthetic active agents.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/624,113 describes multifunctional wipes referred to as “green”, since the support is considered biodegradable, which are impregnated with a biocidal solution. The solution described contains a washing composition combined with a disinfectant/hygiene composition. The washing composition contains nonionic surfactants such as surfactants derived from sugars, from polyols, from alkyl ethers and from alkyl carbonates. It also contains cosurfactants of ionic: anionic, cationic, zwitterionic or amphoteric, nature. The disinfectant composition contains at least one active agent selected from essential oils, colloidal silver, organic acids, or mixtures of these components. It can also contain metals and metal salts. The composition cart be completed with binders, pH modifiers and other adjuvants depending on the use envisioned. The biocidal wipes which are the subject of that document have the disadvantage of not being completely biodegradable and of not being completely consisting of elements of renewable natural origin. It is a ready-to-use, and therefore diluted, impregnating “juice” which is not based on synergy making it possible to have an active concentrate.
There is therefore a need to develop a long-lasting and safe alternative to the use of chemico-synthetic products, which makes it possible to obtain a biocidal effectiveness and an ease of use of product to be diluted and ready-to-use product which are at least equivalent to the chemico-synthetic products on the professional market. It is therefore advisable to have a superconcentrated product which can be dilatable in water before use.